To the Ones Becoming

A voice came to me as I walked into my CDS venue late. “Juliana, they would need someone to help them take photos and make videos today. You should volunteer.” Normally, I would beat that voice down to stupor until it couldn’t raise its head anymore. But this time, I didn’t. Before I explain what happened next, I need to go back a few hours earlier. It was a Friday morning, last week. I was on my way to my Community Development Service (CDS) weekly meeting. I am subscribed to Oladimeji Ajegbile’s  Figuring Life Out . To be honest, I subscribed simply because I know how committed he is to helping people, especially young creators, grow and scale. Anything Oladimeji has to say, I will read. For the first time, I decided to read one of his reflections. It was titled  Your 20s Don't Last Forever . I read it as I commuted to my CDS venue. One of my goals this year is to learn how to read in public spaces, maximizing free moments for reading instead of social media. So I gave the ne...

I have heard and learned what commitment is before. But a few days ago, I learned it on a higher level. I am currently on a public reading accountability journey, and I was supposed to write a general review of everything I read this week. But I couldn’t help myself, I had to write a separate reflection for this one chapter alone. Chapter 19 of The 12 Week Year is profound. I found myself exclaiming out loud, highlighting almost every line. Truly, I almost highlighted the entire chapter because everything stood out . And I knew it would be a disservice, to my present self and my future, to reduce this chapter to just one key principle using my usual review template. ChatGPT had advised me before I started this reading journey that if I tried to write out all the points from a chapter, I might stall, and for someone trying to build momentum and consistency, that advice is valid. But this chapter? This chapter is everything . We say things like: “I am committed.” “One of my qualities...

I’ll just cut to the chase: 1. Learning to Build Friendship, Not Hierarchy Things that seem justifiable are often the hardest to unlearn. For me, it starts with how I relate to my younger sister — the things I’m intentionally trying not to do. I’m trying to stop her from being overly respectful with me because why? Because I don’t really trust it — or myself. What if I get too comfortable and then I abuse that over-respect? Maybe not now, but sometime in the future when she no longer needs me for most things like she does now. Right now, she takes most things I say because, quote-unquote, she’s younger, needs my help, yada yada yada. And because it’s always been this way, it’s easy to think it will continue like that forever. But one day, I might be left with my mouth agape in shock when it no longer does. Because the truth is, she might just be bearing with me right now because she doesn’t have more options. She’s in her dependent era of life, and everyone might be trying to shape her...

I like Friday mornings. Why do I like Friday mornings? Because between the hours of 5 AM to 6 AM, I get to open my mouth to talk — to share my opinions. And that alone takes away sleep. It removes the temptation of going back to bed. Yes, it removes the temptation of going back to bed, and that’s why I like Friday mornings. Here’s the thing: that one hour of talking keeps me awake and helps me rise early. Now, I know you might be reading this and rolling your eyes. Honestly, if I were in your shoes, I’d probably roll my eyes too at someone saying something like this. But if you’ve ever experienced the joy of stepping out of your comfort zone, stretching yourself, doing more than you thought you could do — then you’ll understand what I mean. It’s a joy. A deep sense of happiness. For me, waking up at 5 AM on Fridays to join a group of people and speak — instead of slipping back into sleep — gives me that joy. The joy of stretching. The other day, I planned to edit just the first 5 minut...

Patience, Principles and a lagging PC By Olayide Juliana This morning, I found myself stuck, waiting for my system to boot. It’s an old, laggy machine, and every time I turn it on, there’s this familiar dread. Nothing moves. Nothing loads. And all I can do is wait. People tell me there’s not much I can do about it. Just bear with it. And so I try. But let me be honest: it’s nerve-wracking, frustrating, and incredibly demotivating to deal with this every single day. It gets to me in ways I don't always admit. I start thinking: If only I had more money, I wouldn’t have to deal with this. That thought tempts me. It whispers: Drop your principles. Forget about chasing value. Just chase money. Grab it. Never look back. It’s an ugly temptation. But then I catch myself. I remind myself this is just a phase—a phase that will pass. I remember why I chose to prioritize value over money in the first place. Even if my circumstances aren't perfect now, I can still do good work. I can still...

Reflections on Creativity, Professionalism, and Growth By Olayide Juliana Attending the Kwara Create Workshop was such an enriching and inspiring experience for me. It wasn’t just an event; it was an opportunity to learn, reflect, and deepen my understanding of what it really means to do creative work with purpose and professionalism. One of the things that stood out most was seeing the level of support that exists for the creative industry at both the federal and state levels. Hearing from the Special Assistant to the President on Art, Culture, Tourism, and Creative Economy really opened my eyes. He spoke about structured programs like the Creative Leap Accelerator and the Creative Development Fund , and he reframed Intellectual Property not just as something to protect legally, but as an asset —something with real strategic value that deserves to be properly developed and safeguarded. Another big theme was the importance of professionalism . There was a strong emphasis on ethic...